Shortly after King Zhao of the State of Yan came to the throne, he went to visit Guo Kui, an able and virtuous scholar, and asked for his advice on how to govern the state and make it strong, and how to avenge his father and wipe off the shame of the state. Guo Kui told him the story of “Buying Bones with 1,000 Pieces of Gold”.

燕国国君燕昭王即位后不久，去拜访贤士郭魄先生，向他请教如何治国图强，为先王报仇，为国雪耻。郭魄给燕昭王讲了一个“千金买骨”的故事。

In ancient times, there was a king very fond of horses that could cover 1,000 1i a day. He sent many people, sought many means and spent lots of money to buy such horses. Yet three years had passed, and no such horses were available.

古时候，有一位国君，他非常喜欢千里马。他派了很多人，想了不少办法，花了许多钱去买马。可是，三年过去了，千里马仍然没有买到。

One day, a guard volunteered to help and said to the king: “I am willing to buy a thousand-li steed for Your Majesty.”

一天，一个卫士自告奋勇，对国君说:“我愿意为大王买马。”

The king was pleasantly surprised. He asked: “You? Can you make it?”

“你!”国君又惊又喜，“你能行吗？”

“Your Majesty, you can rest assured,” replied the guard.

“请大王放心！”

The king complied with his request and let him go on his mission.

国君答应了他的请求，让他去了。

The guard sought for the horse wholeheartedly. He spent three months, and after much effort found out the whereabouts of such a horse. But when he hastened there, the horse had already died. Without the least hesitation, he bought the bones of the horse with 500 pieces of gold, and returned to report to the king.

On seeing the horse bones the guard had actually bought, the king flew into a rage. “You! What I want is a live horse, but you have bought the bones of a dead horse. What is the use? You have wasted 500 pieces of gold. What punishment do you think you deserve?”

国君一看买回来的竟是马骨，气得暴跳如雷，骂道：“你！我要的是活马。可是，你买回来的却是死马骨头，有什么用？白白糟蹋了五百金，该当何罪？”

The guard replied calmly: “Your Majesty, this is to let the general public know that Your Majesty is willing to pay a high price for even a dead thousand-li horse, let alone a live one. All the people in the world will know that Your Majesty wishes to buy a thousand-li horse sincerely. Your Majesty, don’t be angry. Just wait and the horse you want will come very soon.”